Download West and Upper West Gulf Coastal Plains

West & Upper West
Gulf Coastal Plains Ecoregions
Conservation
Profile
The Conservancy established its
1,000-acre Fred and Loucille
Dahmer Caddo Lake Preserve to
support the state’s most diverse
native fish population and provide
habitat for more than 40 rare
animals and plants; as the only
natural freshwater lake in Texas,
Caddo Lake covers 50 square
miles of Texas and Louisiana and
lies within the Upper West Gulf
Coastal Plain ecoregion.
In the spring of 2007, abundant
rain allowed for the release of
surplus water from Lake O’ Pines
Reservoir into Caddo Lake and
its tributary, Big Cypress Bayou.
That proved to be a major step
in a multi-year environmental
flows study the Conservancy
undertook, in partnership with
the Caddo Lake Institute and
with assistance from the U.S.
Army Corps of Engineers,
Northeast Texas Municipal Water
District, and several universities
and federal, state and local
government agencies. This effort
is also part of the Conservancy’s
Global Freshwater Program,
which protects river ecosystems
downstream of multiple dams in 13
states.
The Conservancy has been working
to protect Caddo Lake since the
early 1990s and was instrumental
in the creation of Caddo Lake State
Park and Wildlife Management
Area.
Fred and Loucille Dahmer Caddo Lake Preserve © Lynn McBride.
The West and Upper West Gulf Coastal Plains ecoregions span more than
37 million acres across portions of Texas, Arkansas, Louisiana and Oklahoma,
encompassing nearly 17 million acres of varying East Texas terrain commonly
referred to as the Piney Woods. The West Gulf Coastal Plain is home to the
last three percent of a primeval longleaf pine forest that once extended across
92 million acres of the southeastern United States from Texas to Virginia.
The remainder of this forest can contain more than 30 plant species per
square meter—a density on par with tropical forests—which makes it among
the most biologically rich natural systems on Earth.
The terrain shifts gradually from the bottomland forests to upland prairies
and the remnant marshlands surrounding Caddo Lake, which support
critical habitat for terrestrial and aquatic species. But that habitat is at risk
from a variety of threat: land conversion for agriculture, incompatible timber
harvesting, and residential and commercial development.
The Conservancy works at several preserves and projects throughout these
two ecoregions to protect and conserve these lands and waters; five are within
the West Gulf Coastal Plain ecoregion.
Roy E. Larsen Sandyland Sanctuary in Hardin County is part of a
comprehensive effort to restore the longleaf pine ecosystem. The 5,654-acre
preserve is a rare mix of cypress tupelo swamp, hardwood bottomland forest,
wet savannas and dry pine uplands, which combine to create a remarkable
level of biological diversity—the preserve sustains 727 plant species and 234
animal species. Sandyland Sanctuary is site number 17 of the upper loop of
the Great Texas Coastal Birding Trail and is open to the public for hiking,
site of extensive ecological research
related to species diversity and
forest dynamics. The Conservancy
is working at Wier Woods to
combat the spread of invasive plant
species, the single greatest threat to
the health of the beech magnolia
hardwood community on the
preserve.
Above: Barred owl © Paul Keith; Below (top to bottom): Longleaf pinecones © Deanna Boensch, Texas trailing phlox ©
Harold E. Malde.
wildlife watching, canoeing, kayaking
and paddling. It is also listed in
the Top 500 Birding Spots by the
American Bird Conservancy.
Situated on 132 acres in Jasper
County, the Little Rocky Nature
Preserve surrounds the springfed waters of Little Rocky Creek,
which cuts through the rolling pinecovered sandhills and rocky outcrops
of the ancient Catahoula geologic
formation. This rugged topography
supports several interesting natural
communities, including hillside
seepage bogs and Catahoula glades.
Several of the major forest types of
the Piney Woods can be found on
the property, including longleaf pine,
bluejack oakpine, blackjack oak and
post oak.
In the heart of the Big Thicket is
the 240-acre Timber Lake Preserve,
which, like Sandyland Sanctuary,
represents one of the best remaining
examples of the longleaf pine
ecosystem. The goal of the Timber
Lake Preserve is to protect and
restore critical habitat and important
plant and animal species while
working with private landowners
and the timber industry to develop
ecologically compatible forestry
practices.
Big Thicket Bogs and Pinelands
Preserve is located in Tyler County
and contains two distinct forest
communities. The dry upland
pine community is dominated by
longleaf and loblolly pine, several
shrub species and a ground cover of
grasses rich with wildflowers. The
pitcher plant bogs are characterized
by shrubs, grasses, sedges, ferns and
pitcher plants. The Conservancy’s
work throughout the Big Thicket
is coordinated with many public
and private conservation partners
dedicated to connecting conservation
sites in and near the Big Thicket
National Preserve.
Meanwhile, the Upper West
Gulf Coastal Plain is home to
the Conservancy’s 75-acre Sheff ’s
Woods Preserve. Located in
Smith County, Sheff ’s Woods is
a topographically diverse preserve
supporting a variety of vegetation
types, including upland pinehardwood forest, rocky forested
ravines, bottomland hardwoods and
a relict sphagnum bog that harbors
several rare species of ferns, mosses
and liverworts.
By working with industry,
government and community
partners, The Nature Conservancy
is helping to conserve and restore
Texas’ remaining hardwood forests
and the vast diversity of life found
within them.
The 106-acre Wier Woods Preserve
in Hardin County contains some of
the best examples of an American
beech magnolia hardwood forest
community west of the Mississippi.
For 25 years, the property was the
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